The 1931 REO Flying Cloud Two Door Coupe had undergone a restoration approximately 25 years prior to being brought to our shop but had never been driven. The new owner asked us to evaluate the car mechanically and get it ready for regular use.
We drained and cleaned the fuel system, which included cleaning and sealing the fuel tank. The Hobson fuel gauge and sending unit were rebuilt. The brake and master cylinders were removed and rebuilt with brass sleeves, eliminating the likely hood of corrosion issues in the future. All of the rubber brake lines were replaced with custom units to replace the original. The distributor was rebuilt with new bushings and a broken centrifugal arm was replaced. The wheel bearings were cleaned and greased and the tires were replaced.
The original oil filter on these REOs is a pancake style sealed canister which is no longer available. We created an adaptor to allow a modern spin-on filter to be used in place of the original. We also modified the original filter to fit over the modern replacement and hide it from view.
Update: While installing a new exhaust system we found that one of the rear leaf springs had broken. A new unit was fabricated and installed.
